Sapience Investments LLC Sells 7,163 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Sapience Investments LLC cut its stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 43,502 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,163 shares during the quarter. Sapience Investments LLC owned 0.05% of Hancock Whitney worth $2,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HWC. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $92,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company's stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 838 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.09, for a total transaction of $40,299.42. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 23,019 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,106,983.71. The trade was a 3.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 3.4%

HWC stock traded down $1.90 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $54.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 367,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 593,309. The company's fifty day moving average price is $51.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Hancock Whitney Co. has a twelve month low of $43.60 and a twelve month high of $62.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 1.05.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $367.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $368.12 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HWC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $62.00 price target (down previously from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $70.00 price target (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com upgraded Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.25.

Hancock Whitney Profile

Hancock Whitney Corporation operates as the financial holding company for Hancock Whitney Bank that provides traditional and online banking services to commercial, small business, and retail customers. It offers various transaction and savings deposit products consisting of brokered deposits, time deposits, and money market accounts; treasury management services, secured and unsecured loan products including revolving credit facilities, and letters of credit and similar financial guarantees; and trust and investment management services to retirement plans, corporations, and individuals, and investment advisory and brokerage products.